June 12. On this date in 1940, during the rapid German invasion of France in World War II, Shoghi Effendi sent a cable to North American Bahá'ís titled "Emergence of Spiritual World Order."

June 12. On this date in 1940, during the rapid German invasion of France in World War II, Shoghi Effendi sent a cable to North American Bahá'ís titled "Emergence of Spiritual World Order."

Emergence of Spiritual World Order
12 JUNE 1940
STUPENDOUS STRUGGLE NOW CONVULSING MAJOR PART EUROPEAN CONTINENT PROGRESSIVELY REVEALING OMINOUS FEATURES, INCREASINGLY ASSUMING PROPORTIONS TITANIC UPHEAVAL FORESHADOWED SEVENTY YEARS AGO PROPHETIC PEN BAHA'U'LLAH. DISRUPTIVE FORCES ASSOCIATED HUMANITY'S WORLD-SHAKING ORDEAL CLOSELY INTERRELATED CONSTRUCTIVE POTENTIALITIES INHERENT AMERICAN BELIEVERS DIVINELY ORDAINED PLAN. BOTH DIRECTLY HASTENING EMERGENCE SPIRITUAL WORLD ORDER STIRRING WOMB TRAVAILING AGE. ENTREAT AMERICAN BAHA'I COMMUNITY WHATEVER IMMEDIATE OR DISTANT REPERCUSSIONS PRESENT TURMOIL ON THEIR OWN CONTINENT HOWEVER VIOLENT ITS IMPACT WORLD CENTER THEIR FAITH PLEDGE THEMSELVES ANEW BEFORE THRONE BAHA'U'LLAH DISCHARGE WITH UNSWERVING AIM UNFAILING COURAGE INVINCIBLE VIGOR EXEMPLARY FIDELITY EVER-DEEPENING CONSECRATION DUAL RESPONSIBILITY SOLEMNLY UNDERTAKEN UNDER SEVEN YEAR PLAN. IMPLORE THEM ACCELERATE EFFORTS INCREASE VIGILANCE DEEPEN UNITY MULTIPLY HEROIC FEATS MAINTAIN DISTANT OUTPOSTS TEACHING FIELD LATIN AMERICA EXPEDITE TERMINATION LAST STAGE ORNAMENTATION TEMPLE. PRAYING CONTINUALLY REDOUBLED FERVOR.

While Shoghi Effendi's cable states the events in Europe were "foreshadowed seventy years ago (by the) prophetic pen (of) Bahá'u'lláh," it is worth reflecting on Shoghi Effendi's own words about events in Europe from just a few years previous, in 1934 and 1938....

On February 11, 1934, Shoghi Effendi addressed a letter to a German Bahá'í stating about the Nazi government that "obedience to the regulations and orders of the state is indeed, the sacred obligation of every true and loyal Bahá'í" and that "our German friends are under the sacred obligation to whole-heartedly obey the existing political regime, whatever be their personal views and criticisms of its actual working. There is nothing more contrary to the spirit of the Cause than open rebellion against the governmental authorities of a country, specially if they do not interfere in and do not oppose the inner and sacred beliefs and religious convictions of the individual. And there is every reason to believe that the present regime in Germany, which has thus far refused to trample upon the domain of individual conscience in all matters pertaining to religion will never encroach upon it in the near future, unless some unforeseen and unexpected changes take place. And this seems to be doubtful at present."

On May 16, 1933, Shoghi Effendi wrote Adelbert Mühlschlegel that "whatever we say of Germany, we have to admit that its people are endowed with a spiritual vitality quite superior to many other races."

16 May 1933
Dear Dr. Muhlschlegel:
The Guardian ... does sincerely hope that the reports we receive here about the sentiments rampant in Germany are untrue to fact, that it is a regeneration of the people rather than a retrogression towards a dead past. Because whatever we say of Germany, we have to admit that its people are endowed with a spiritual vitality quite superior to many other races. Being in the heart of that populated continent and being inspired by such a strong religious spirit, Germany can easily achieve a wonderful task in regenerating the world. The eyes of the world are surely centered around it expecting to see what it will do.
Yet we Bahá'ís should remember that we stand above politics. That that field does not interest us; that we attribute importance to things of the spirit, that we await salvation to come from the Faith that burns in our hearts.
In his moments of prayer and meditation at the Blessed Shrines, the Guardian will think of you and the other friends in Germany and ask God to guide you and assist you in playing your important role of spiritualizing the whole world--so immersed at present in material pursuits and interests....
In the Guardian's own handwriting:
Dear and precious co-worker:
I was so pleased to receive your letter. I long to hear more fully and more frequently from you. You are a tower of ... and a pillar of His Faith in that land. Germany has a glorious future under the banner of the Faith of Bahá'u'lláh. Its mission is to champion the cause of God in Europe and establish it firmly in the heart of that continent. The tests and trials which have beset the Faith in that land were necessary and providential. It is for the German believers, who have weathered the storm, to arise and promote the Cause, to proclaim the non-political character of their Faith, to establish its nascent institutions and prove by their words and acts their freedom from every taint of particularism and prejudice. May the Almighty guide their steps, sustain them in their efforts and bless their activities.
Shoghi
11 February 1934
Dear Bahá'í Brother,
I am charged by the Guardian to thank you for your letter of Jan. 30th as well as for the enclosed pamphlet containing the address delivered by Herr Hitler on Oct. 14th, 1933, on the subject of Germany's attitude towards peace, all of which he read with deepest care and sustained interest. He wishes me to convey to you and to all the members of your German National Assembly and through them to all the followers of the Faith in Germany his views on the present conditions in that land, and particularly in their relation to the nature and scope of the Bahá'í activities of our German believers.
At the outset it should be made indubitably clear that the Bahá'í Cause being essentially a religious movement of a spiritual character stands above every political party or group, and thus cannot and should not act in contravention to the principles, laws, and doctrines of any government. Obedience to the regulations and orders of the state is indeed, the sacred obligation of every true and loyal Bahá'í. Both Bahá'u'lláh and `Abdu'l-Bahá have urged us all to be submissive and loyal to the political authorities of our respective countries. It follows, therefore, that our German friends are under the sacred obligation to whole-heartedly obey the existing political regime, whatever be their personal views and criticisms of its actual working. There is nothing more contrary to the spirit of the Cause than open rebellion against the governmental authorities of a country, specially if they do not interfere in and do not oppose the inner and sacred beliefs and religious convictions of the individual. And there is every reason to believe that the present regime in Germany which has thus far refused to trample upon the domain of individual conscience in all matters pertaining to religion will never encroach upon it in the near future, unless some unforeseen and unexpected changes take place. And this seems to be doubtful at present.
For whereas the friends should obey the government under which they live, even at the risk of sacrificing all their administrative affairs and interests, they should under no circumstances suffer their inner religious beliefs and convictions to be violated and transgressed by any authority whatever. A distinction of a fundamental importance must, therefore, be made between spiritual and administrative matters. Whereas the former are sacred and inviolable, and hence cannot be subject to compromise, the latter are secondary and can consequently be given up and even sacrificed for the sake of obedience to the laws and regulations of the government. Obedience to the state is so vital a principle of the Cause that should the authorities in Germany decide to-day to prevent the Bahá'ís from holding any meeting or publishing any literature they should obey and be as submissive as our Russian believers have thus far been under the Soviet regime. But, as already pointed out, such an allegiance is confined merely to administrative matters which if checked can only retard the progress of the Faith for some time. In matters of belief, however, no compromise whatever should be allowed, even though the outcome of it be death or expulsion
There is one more point to be emphasized in this connection. The principle of obedience to government does not place any Bahá'í under the obligation of identifying the teachings of his Faith with the political program enforced by the government. For such an identification, besides being erroneous and contrary to both the spirit as well as the form of the Bahá'í message, would necessarily create a conflict within the conscience of every loyal believer.
For reasons which are only too obvious the Bahá'í philosophy of social and political organization cannot be fully reconciled with the political doctrines and conceptions that are current and much in vogue to-day. The wave of nationalism, so aggressive and so contagious in its effects, which has swept not only over Europe but over a large part of mankind is, indeed, the very negation of the gospel of peace and of brotherhood proclaimed by Bahá'u'lláh. The actual trend in the political world is, indeed, far from being in the direction of the Bahá'í teachings. The world is drawing nearer and nearer to a universal catastrophe which will mark the end of a bankrupt and of a fundamentally defective civilization.
From such considerations we can well conclude that we as Bahá'ís can in no wise identify the teachings of Bahá'u'lláh with man-made creeds and conceptions, which by their very nature are impotent to save the world from the dangers with which it is being so fiercely and so increasingly assailed.
The Guardian hopes that these brief explanations will be sufficient to guide our German National Assembly in their efforts to safeguard and promote the interests of the Faith, and that through them they will be given a new vision of the Cause and a fresh determination to carry forward its message to the world at large.
With greetings and best wishes to you and to all the friends in Germany,...
In the Guardian's own handwriting:
Dear and valued co-worker:
I wish to add a few words in loving appreciation of your strenuous, your intelligent and devoted efforts for the spread and consolidation of our beloved Faith. May the Almighty bless your endeavours, deepen your understanding of the essentials and requirements of our beloved Cause, and enable you in these difficult and challenging days to promote its interests and consolidate its institutions,
Your true brother,
Shoghi

On April 25, 1938, one month after Nazi Germany's Anschluss of Austria, a letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi stated "it made him immensely happy to realize that the friends in Germany and Austria have been again drawn together, and are closer than ever in the past. He hopes that the removal of the barriers which have hitherto so sadly separated the German and Austrian communities will mark the beginning of a new era of unprecedented growth and expansion in your affairs."

25 April 1938
Dear Friends,
The postcard message which you had sent the Guardian on the occasion of Dr. Muhlschlegel's visit to Vienna, has just been received, and it made him immensely happy to realize that the friends in Germany and Austria have been again drawn together, and are closer than ever in the past. He hopes that the removal of the barriers which have hitherto so sadly separated the German and Austrian communities will mark the beginning of a new era of unprecedented growth and expansion in your affairs. He is certain that you are fully alive to the far-reaching possibilities which the present hour offers, and wishes you therefore to be happy and thankful, and confident in the blessings which the future has in store for you, and your dear co-workers in that land.
I take this opportunity of assuring you once more of his prayers for your welfare, protection and continued guidance, and reciprocating your very kind greetings,...
In the Guardian's own handwriting:
Assuring you in person of my incessant prayers for your protection, guidance and happiness,
your true and grateful brother,
Shoghi

May 8. On this date in 1902, William Sutherland Maxwell wed May Ellis Bolles in London. They met while William was studying architecture in Paris and May was the sister of one of his classmates. The couple hosted 'Abdu'l-Bahá in their Montreal and were the parents of Mary Sutherland Maxwell, the future Amatu'l-Bahá Rúhíyyih Khánum, wife of Shoghi Effendi.

May 8. On this date in 1902, William Sutherland Maxwell wed May Ellis Bolles in London. They met while William was studying architecture in Paris and May was the sister of one of his classmates. The couple hosted 'Abdu'l-Bahá in their Montreal and were the parents of Mary Sutherland Maxwell, the future Amatu'l-Bahá Rúhíyyih Khánum, wife of Shoghi Effendi.

Because 'Abdu'l-Bahá stayed at the Maxwell's home during his stay in Montreal in 1912, the home was later designated a Bahá’í Shrine. Amatu'l-Bahá Rúhíyyih Khánum described the importance of this Shrine with the following words:

Things arise in historic perspective as time goes by. This is the only private home in Canada where ‘Abdu’l-Bahá stayed. After His visit, it was always considered blessed by having been used by Him. For future generations, it will eventually grow in importance and sacredness, because He, the Centre of the Covenant, the Greatest Mystery of God, stayed here.

It was at this home that 'Abdu'l-Bahá gave his talk discussing his views on native cultures, Africans, indigenous North Americans and pre-Columbian America:

Nature is the material world. When we look upon it, we see that it is dark and imperfect. For instance, if we allow a piece of land to remain in its natural condition, we will find it covered with thorns and thistles; useless weeds and wild vegetation will flourish upon it, and it will become like a jungle. The trees will be fruitless, lacking beauty and symmetry; wild animals, noxious insects and reptiles will abound in its dark recesses. This is the incompleteness and imperfection of the world of nature. To change these conditions, we must clear the ground and cultivate it so that flowers may grow instead of thorns and weeds—that is to say, we must illumine the dark world of nature. In their primal natural state, the forests are dim, gloomy, impenetrable. Man opens them to the light, clears away the tangled underbrush and plants fruitful trees. Soon the wild woodlands and jungle are changed into productive orchards and beautiful gardens; order has replaced chaos; the dark realm of nature has become illumined and brightened by cultivation.
If man himself is left in his natural state, he will become lower than the animal and continue to grow more ignorant and imperfect. The savage tribes of central Africa are evidences of this. Left in their natural condition, they have sunk to the lowest depths and degrees of barbarism, dimly groping in a world of mental and moral obscurity. If we wish to illumine this dark plane of human existence, we must bring man forth from the hopeless captivity of nature, educate him and show him the pathway of light and knowledge, until, uplifted from his condition of ignorance, he becomes wise and knowing; no longer savage and revengeful, he becomes civilized and kind; once evil and sinister, he is endowed with the attributes of heaven. But left in his natural condition without education and training, it is certain that he will become more depraved and vicious than the animal, even to the extreme degree witnessed among African tribes who practice cannibalism. It is evident, therefore, that the world of nature is incomplete, imperfect until awakened and illumined by the light and stimulus of education.
In these days there are new schools of philosophy blindly claiming that the world of nature is perfect. If this is true, why are children trained and educated in schools, and what is the need of extended courses in sciences, arts and letters in colleges and universities? What would be the result if humanity were left in its natural condition without education or training? All scientific discoveries and attainments are the outcomes of knowledge and education. The telegraph, phonograph, telephone were latent and potential in the world of nature but would never have come forth into the realm of visibility unless man through education had penetrated and discovered the laws which control them. All the marvelous developments and miracles of what we call civilization would have remained hidden, unknown and, so to speak, nonexistent, if man had remained in his natural condition, deprived of the bounties, blessings and benefits of education and mental culture. The intrinsic difference between the ignorant man and the astute philosopher is that the former has not been lifted out of his natural condition, while the latter has undergone systematic training and education in schools and colleges until his mind has awakened and unfolded to higher realms of thought and perception; otherwise, both are human and natural.
God has sent forth the Prophets for the purpose of quickening the soul of man into higher and divine recognitions. He has revealed the heavenly Books for this great purpose. For this the breaths of the Holy Spirit have been wafted through the gardens of human hearts, the doors of the divine Kingdom opened to mankind and the invisible inspirations sent forth from on high. This divine and ideal power has been bestowed upon man in order that he may purify himself from the imperfections of nature and uplift his soul to the realm of might and power. God has purposed that the darkness of the world of nature shall be dispelled and the imperfect attributes of the natal self be effaced in the effulgent reflection of the Sun of Truth. The mission of the Prophets of God has been to train the souls of humanity and free them from the thralldom of natural instincts and physical tendencies. They are like unto Gardeners, and the world of humanity is the field of Their cultivation, the wilderness and untrained jungle growth wherein They proceed to labor. They cause the crooked branches to become straightened, the fruitless trees to become fruitful, and gradually transform this great wild, uncultivated field into a beautiful orchard producing wonderful abundance and outcome.
If the world of nature were perfect and complete in itself, there would be no need of such training and cultivation in the human world—no need of teachers, schools and universities, arts and crafts. The revelations of the Prophets of God would not have been necessary, and the heavenly Books would have been superfluous. If the world of nature were perfect and sufficient for mankind, we would have no need of God and our belief in Him. Therefore, the bestowal of all these great helps and accessories to the attainment of divine life is because the world of nature is incomplete and imperfect. Consider this Canadian country during the early history of Montreal when the land was in its wild, uncultivated and natural condition. The soil was unproductive, rocky and almost uninhabitable—vast forests stretching in every direction. What invisible power caused this great metropolis to spring up amid such savage and forbidding conditions? It was the human mind. Therefore, nature and the effect of nature’s laws were imperfect. The mind of man remedied and removed this imperfect condition, until now we behold a great city instead of a savage unbroken wilderness. Before the coming of Columbus America itself was a wild, uncultivated expanse of primeval forest, mountains and rivers—a very world of nature. Now it has become the world of man. It was dark, forbidding and savage; now it has become illumined with a great civilization and prosperity. Instead of forests, we behold productive farms, beautiful gardens and prolific orchards. Instead of thorns and useless vegetation, we find flowers, domestic animals and fields awaiting harvest. If the world of nature were perfect, the condition of this great country would have been left unchanged.
If a child is left in its natural state and deprived of education, there is no doubt that it will grow up in ignorance and illiteracy, its mental faculties dulled and dimmed; in fact, it will become like an animal. This is evident among the savages of central Africa, who are scarcely higher than the beast in mental development.
The conclusion is irresistible that the splendors of the Sun of Truth, the Word of God, have been the source and cause of human upbuilding and civilization. The world of nature is the kingdom of the animal. In its natural condition and plane of limitation the animal is perfect. The ferocious beasts of prey have been completely subject to the laws of nature in their development. They are without education or training; they have no power of abstract reasoning and intellectual ideals; they have no touch with the spiritual world and are without conception of God or the Holy Spirit. The animal can neither recognize nor apprehend the spiritual power of man and makes no distinction between man and itself, for the reason that its susceptibilities are limited to the plane of the senses. It lives under the bondage of nature and nature’s laws. All the animals are materialists. They are deniers of God and without realization of a transcendent power in the universe. They have no knowledge of the divine Prophets and Holy Books—mere captives of nature and the sense world. In reality they are like the great philosophers of this day who are not in touch with God and the Holy Spirit—deniers of the Prophets, ignorant of spiritual susceptibilities, deprived of the heavenly bounties and without belief in the supernatural power. The animal lives this kind of life blissfully and untroubled, whereas the material philosophers labor and study for ten or twenty years in schools and colleges, denying God, the Holy Spirit and divine inspirations. The animal is even a greater philosopher, for it attains the ability to do this without labor and study. For instance, the cow denies God and the Holy Spirit, knows nothing of divine inspirations, heavenly bounties or spiritual emotions and is a stranger to the world of hearts. Like the philosophers, the cow is a captive of nature and knows nothing beyond the range of the senses. The philosophers, however, glory in this, saying, “We are not captives of superstitions; we have implicit faith in the impressions of the senses and know nothing beyond the realm of nature, which contains and covers everything.” But the cow, without study or proficiency in the sciences, modestly and quietly views life from the same standpoint, living in harmony with nature’s laws in the utmost dignity and nobility.
This is not the glory of man. The glory of man is in the knowledge of God, spiritual susceptibilities, attainment to transcendent powers and the bounties of the Holy Spirit. The glory of man is in being informed of the teachings of God. This is the glory of humanity. Ignorance is not glory but darkness. Can these souls who are steeped in the lower strata of ignorance become informed of the mysteries of God and the realities of existence while Jesus Christ was without knowledge of them? Is the intellect of these people greater than the intellect of Christ? Christ was heavenly, divine and belonged to the world of the Kingdom. He was the embodiment of spiritual knowledge. His intellect was superior to these philosophers, His comprehension deeper, His perception keener, His knowledge more perfect. How is it that He overlooked and denied Himself everything in this world? He attached little importance to this material life, denying Himself rest and composure, accepting trials and voluntarily suffering vicissitudes because He was endowed with spiritual susceptibilities and the power of the Holy Spirit. He beheld the splendors of the divine Kingdom, embodied the bounties of God and possessed ideal powers. He was illumined with love and mercy, and so, likewise, were all the Prophets of God.

May 5. On this date in 1960, in the wake of the NSA of France's acceptance of Mason Remey's claim to the Guardianship, the Hands of the Cause of in the Holy Land sent a letter to the NSA of France announcing the imminent visit of Hand of the Cause Abu'l-Qasim Faizi to France. The NSA would be declared Covenant-breakers.

May 5. On this date in 1960, in the wake of the NSA of France's acceptance of Mason Remey's claim to the Guardianship, the Hands of the Cause of in the Holy Land sent a letter to the NSA of France announcing the imminent visit of Hand of the Cause Abu'l-Qasim Faizi to France. The NSA would be declared Covenant-breakers.

To the National Spiritual Assembly and the Believers of France
May 5, 1960
Dear Friends,
The Hands in the Holy Land are sending the Hand of the Cause Abu'l-Qasim Faizi, to France, to meet with the National Spiritual Assembly and the Bahá'ís of France, and to act on behalf of the Hands for the protection of the Faith in the situation created by Mr. Remey's unfounded claim.
Mr. Faizi, will act in accordance with instructions given him by the Hands in the Holy Land. He is empowered to take whatever steps may be necessary to carry out these instructions.
In the service of the beloved Guardian,
HANDS OF THE CAUSE IN THE HOLY LAND

May 1. On this date in 1848, a letter from Iran in French was published in the Journal de Constantinople, marking one of the earliest mentions of the Bab in a Western language publication. This occurred before the June 1848 Conference of Badasht.

May 1. On this date in 1848, a letter from Iran in French was published in the Journal de Constantinople, marking one of the earliest mentions of the Bab in a Western language publication. This occurred before the June 1848 Conference of Badasht.

It says:

D'après notre correspondance de Perse, datée de Teheran, 1er mai, que nous publions plus bas, …
De plus, il paraîtrait que les faits auxquels ces nouvelles se rapportent, auraient eu pour résultat d'encourager les partisans de Bab dans leur résistance á l'autorité religieuse du pays. Bab est un fou qui s'est annoncé en Perse, il y a quelque temps, comme le Mehdj (Messie), et par ses prédications dans l'Azerbaïdjan et le Ghilan, il avait réussi á grouper autour de lui environ 30,000 prosélytes. Le prince royal nommé en dernier lieu gouverneur de Tébriz, ayant pu, par la persuasion, obtenir (p. 2) que Bab confessàt son imposture, celui-ci a été jeté dans un cachot, apres avoir été soumis prèalablement à la torture, conformément aux lois du pays.
Il serait possible que ces mouvemens eussent des rapports avec les projets révolutionnaires de Sàlar…
Bien que les nouvelles que nous venons de donner sur la situation de la Perse, soieat puisées à des sources dignes de foi, nous pensons qu'avant d'y ajouter une complète créance, il serait convenable d'en attendre la confirmation par les lettres que le prochain courrier nous apportera de ce pays.…

with thanks to J. and Liam Winters at BLO, translates to :

According to our correspondence from Persia, dated May 1st from Teheran, which we publish below, …
In addition, it would appear that the facts to which this news relates has had the effect of encouraging the supporters of the Bab in their resistance to religious authorities of the country. The Bab is a madman who has announced himself in Persia, some time ago, to be the Mahdi (Messiah), and by his preaching in Azerbaijan and Gilan, he has succeeded in gathering around him about 30,000 converts. The royal prince named last governor of Tabríz, having been able, by persuasion, to get (p. 2) the Bab to confess his imposture. The latter has been thrown into a dungeon, after having previously been subjected to torture, in accordance with the laws of the country.
It is possible that these movements had relationships with revolutionary projects of Salar ...
Although the news that we have just given concerning the situation of Persia has been drawn from reliable sources, we believe that, before giving it complete credence, it would be proper to wait for confirmation from letters which the next post will bring us from that country.

May 1. On this date in 2001, the Universal House of Justice wrote "it is suggested that the two powers referred to by Bahá'u'lláh in the Lawh-i-Maqsúd as being persecutors of the Jews would appear to be France and Russia." Bahá'u'lláh wrote the Tablet of Maqṣúd on January 20, 1882.

May 1. On this date in 2001, the Universal House of Justice wrote "it is suggested that the two powers referred to by Bahá'u'lláh in the Lawh-i-Maqsúd as being persecutors of the Jews would appear to be France and Russia." Bahá'u'lláh wrote the Tablet of Maqṣúd on January 20, 1882.

Lawh-i-Maqsúd:
Letter from the Universal House of Justice;
excerpt from Juan Cole's Modernity and Millennium

MEMORANDUM

To: The Universal House of Justice
From: Research Department

Date: 1 May 2001

Lawh-i-Maqsúd¹
The Research Department has studied the questions about the Lawh-i-Maqsúd raised by Mr. ... in his email message of 7 February 2001 to the Universal House of Justice. Specifically, he enquires about the date of the revelation of the Tablet of Maqsúd and he seeks information about the "Two great powers"² referred to in this Tablet. We provide the following response.


Date of Revelation of the Tablet

The Lawh-i-Maqsúd was revealed by Bahá'u'lláh in the prison-city of 'Akká on the 29th of Safar 1299 A.H. (January 20 1882).


"Two great powers"

Mr. ... requests information about the "Two great powers", mentioned in the following passage from the Tablet of Maqsúd, that appears on page 170 of Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh revealed after the Kitáb-i-Aqdas.

Two great powers who regard themselves as the founders and leaders of civilization and the framers of constitutions have risen up against the followers of the Faith associated with Him who conversed with God.³

The Research Department has not, to date, been able to locate any references in the Bahá'í Writings that explain the identity of the two countries that arose against the followers of Moses. However, from a perusal of European history in the second part of the 19th century, it is suggested that the two powers referred to by Bahá'u'lláh in the Lawh-i-Maqsúd as being persecutors of the Jews would appear to be France and Russia. The world powers of the 1880s were Britain, France, Germany, Austria-Hungary and Russia. The Encyclopedia Judaica indicates that the Jews were officially emancipated in Germany during the latter half of the 19th century, and although there was some anti-semitic activity in Austria, it was officially opposed by the government. In France, however, between 1881 and 1894, there was a rise of anti-Jewish publicity and agitation, the founding of the National Anti-Semitic League in 1889, and the demand in 1891 by 32 French deputies (members of parliament) that Jews be expelled from France, culminated in the infamous Dreyfus Affair of 1894. In Russia, the assassination of Alexander II led to pogroms, leading to the so-called "May laws" of 1882 which prohibited Jews from living in villages and in 1886 to the limitation of the number of Jews allowed into University. Discrimination was continued officially until 1918. There was no official anti-semitism in Britain.


Notes:

¹ Published in Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh revealed after the Kitáb-i-Aqdas (Wilmette: Bahá'í Publishing Trust, 1997), pages 159-178.² Ibid., page 170.³ Moses

      Universal House of Justice

April 12. On this date in 1873, Hippolyte Dreyfus-Barney, later the first French Bahá’í, Disciple of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Bahá'í scholar and translator, was born. The son of a prominent French Jewish family), he was converted to the Bahá'í Faith around 1900 by May Ellis Bolles (later Maxwell), the mother of Amatu'l-Bahá Rúhíyyih Khánum, who was resident in France.

April 12. On this date in 1873, Hippolyte Dreyfus-Barney, later the first French Bahá’í, Disciple of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Bahá'í scholar and translator, was born. The son of a prominent French Jewish family), he was converted to the Bahá'í Faith around 1900 by May Ellis Bolles (later Maxwell), the mother of Amatu'l-Bahá Rúhíyyih Khánum, who was resident in France.

April 2. On this date in 2004, Ola Pawlowska passed away in Newfoundland. She had been named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for her pioneering work to the St. Pierre and Miquelon. "Knight of Bahá'u'lláh" was a title conferred to Bahá'ís who introduced the Bahá'í Faith to new territories during the Ten Year Crusade.

April 2. On this date in 2004, Ola Pawlowska passed away in Newfoundland. She had been named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for her pioneering work to the St. Pierre and Miquelon. "Knight of Bahá'u'lláh" was a title conferred to Bahá'ís who introduced the Bahá'í Faith to new territories during the Ten Year Crusade.

What has always struck me about the designation of Knights of Bahá'u'lláh is the arbitrariness with which the "virgin territories" were defined. For example, the Cook Islands and Tonga Island, both part of the Realm of New Zealand have distinct sets of Knights, while Niue and the Chatham Islands, also part of the Realm of New Zealand, are Knightless.

Several islands off the coast of Alaska have distinct Knights, like Baranof Island , Kodiak Island, and the Aleutian Islands. Yet other Alaskan islands, like the Pribilof Islands are Knightless.
The Brazilian state of Amapá has its own Knights (for Portuguese Guiana), while the other Brazilian states are Knightless.

Crete and Rhodes have Knights distinct from the Knights of mainland Greece, yet other Greek islands, like Santorini and Samos, are Knightless.

Key West has its own Knight, yet the other Florida Keys are Knightless.

Tiny islands, like Great Manan, have their own Knights.

 St. Thomas Island has its own Knight, yet the remaining Leeward Islands have one set of Knights, representing numerous politically and geographically independent islands. Similarly, the Windward Islands have one set of Knights, representing numerous politically and geographically independent islands.

March 27. On this date in 1864, A. L. M. Nicolas was born in Rasht, in the Gilan Province of Iran where his father was stationed with the French Consular Service in Persia. He was an historian and orientalist, official interpreter of the Legation French abroad, France's consul general in Tabriz, and the first Western Bábí.

March 27. On this date in 1864, A. L. M. Nicolas was born in Rasht, in the Gilan Province of Iran where his father was stationed with the French Consular Service in Persia. He was an historian and orientalist, official interpreter of the Legation French abroad, France's consul general in Tabriz, and the first Western Bábí.

A. L. M. Nicolas was born in Rasht, in the Gilan Province of Iran on March 27, 1864. His father, Louis Jean Baptiste Nicolas, was stationed with the French Consular Service in Persia.
A. L. M. Nicolas would become a historian and French orientalist, official interpreter of the Legation French abroad, and France's consul general in Tabriz.

After reading Gobineau's Trois ans en Asie, 1855-1858 he checked all the information Gobineau had written in his book, corrected some of it, and then began to translate the writings of the Báb. Over the course of translating the Báb’s Persian Bayán and Dalá'il-i-Sab'ih) (The Seven Proofs) from Persian to French, he developed a growing appreciation for the teachings and person of the Báb, and converted to Bábism, becomin the first Western Bábí. He wrote various works Seyyed Ali Mohamed dit le Báb (1905) and was the first to translate a work of the Báb into French: the Arabic Beyan and the Persian Beyan, an Essai sur le Chéikhisme (1911) and several articles in newspapers such that Review of the Muslim World. Nicolas became knight of the Legion of Honour in 1909.
A. L. M. Nicolas died on February 28, 1939

March 11. On this date in 1896. Yvonne Liegois was born in Paris, France. She would later move to Bolivia where she became a Bahá’í on May 18, 1941. Although Marina Núñez del Prado became the first Bolivian Bahá’í on February 2, 1941, she did not remain active, so Yvonne Liegois Cuellar is recognized as the first Bahá’í in Bolivia.

March 11. On this date in 1896. Yvonne Liegois was born in Paris, France. She would later move to Bolivia where she became a Bahá’í on May 18, 1941. Although Marina Núñez del Prado became the first Bolivian Bahá’í on February 2, 1941, she did not remain active, so Yvonne Liegois Cuellar is recognized as the first Bahá’í in Bolivia.

Born in France on March 11, 1896, Yvonne Cuellar and her husband, Arturo Cuellar, lived in La Paz, Bolivia, in the 1940s where they had an American boarder, Eleanor Adler, who was first Bahá’í pioneer to Bolivia. Both she and her husband became Bahá’ís and helped establish the first Baha'i community of La Paz.

Yvonne Liegois Cuellar became a Bahá’í on May 18, 1941. Although Marina Núñez del Prado, a celebrated sculptor, was the first Bolivian to become a Bahá’í, on February 2, 1941, she did not remain active, so Yvonne Cuellar is recognized as the first Bahá’í in Bolivia. Shoghi Effendi called her the "Mother of Bolivia". Arturo Cuellar would later become a Bahá’í in 1946 through his wife's efforts.

In 1953, the Cuellars moved to the United States but returned to Bolivia in 1956 at the request of the National Spiritual Assembly of that country. In 1958 she traveled to France to help establish the inaugural National Spiritual Assembly, which was dissolved two years later through reports of Hand of the Cause Abu'l-Qásim Faizi by the authority of the Custodians due to a majority of the Assembly's acceptance of Charles Mason Remey's claim to being the second Guardian of the Bahá’í Faith subsequent to the death of Shoghi Effendi.
 
In 1968 the Cuellars once again moved to the United States. Yvonne Cullear died in Littleton, Colorado on December 7, 1983.

March 10. On this date in 1913, 'Abdu’l-Bahá' gave a talk in Paris, later published as "The Day of God" in Bahá’í Scriptures: Selections from the Utterances of Bahá’u’lláh and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’, during which he states "This is the Day in which the inhabitants of all the world shall enter under the shelter of the Word of God. This is the Day whose real sovereign is His Highness the Almighty. This is the Day when the East and the West shall embrace each other like unto two lovers. This is the Day in which war and contention shall be forgotten. This is the Day in which nations and governments will enter into an eternal bond of amity and conciliation. This Century is the fulfillment of the Promised Century."

March 10. On this date in 1913, 'Abdu’l-Bahá' gave a talk in Paris, later published as "The Day of God" in Bahá’í Scriptures: Selections from the Utterances of Bahá’u’lláh and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’, during which he states "This is the Day in which the inhabitants of all the world shall enter under the shelter of the Word of God. This is the Day whose real sovereign is His Highness the Almighty. This is the Day when the East and the West shall embrace each other like unto two lovers. This is the Day in which war and contention shall be forgotten. This is the Day in which nations and governments will enter into an eternal bond of amity and conciliation. This Century is the fulfillment of the Promised Century."

THE DAY OF GOD
Do you know in what Day you are living? Do you realize in what Dispensation you are alive? Have you not heard in the Holy Scriptures that at the consummation of the ages there shall appear a Day which is the Sun of all the past Days? This is the Day in which the Lord of Hosts has come down from heaven on the clouds of glory! This is the Day in which the inhabitants of all the world shall enter under the shelter of the Word of God.
This is the Day whose real sovereign is His Highness the Almighty. This is the Day when the East and the West shall embrace each other like unto two lovers. This is the Day in which war and contention shall be forgotten. This is the Day in which nations and governments will enter into an eternal bond of amity and conciliation. This Century is the fulfillment of the Promised Century.
This Day is the dawn of the appearances of the traces of the glorious vision of the past prophets and sages.
Now is the dawn; ere long the effulgent Sun shall rise and station itself in the meridian of its majesty. Then you shall observe the effects of the Sun. Then you shall behold what heavenly illumination has become manifest. Then you shall comprehend that these are the infinite bestowals of God! Then you shall see that this world has become another world. Then you shall perceive that the Teachings of God have universally spread.
Rest ye assured that this darkness shall be dispelled and these impenetrable clouds which have darkened the horizon shall be scattered, and the Sun of Reality shall appear in its full splendor. Its rays shall melt the icebergs of hatred and differences which have transformed the moving sea of humanity into hard frozen immensity. The vices of the world of nature shall be changed into praiseworthy attributes, and the lights of the excellencies of the Divine realm shall appear.
The principles of His Holiness Bahá’u’lláh, like unto the spirit, shall penetrate the dead body of the world, and the Love of God, like unto an artery, shall beat through the heart of the five continents.
The East shall become illumined, the West perfumed, and the children of men shall enter beneath the all-embracing canopy of the oneness of the world of humanity.
In this Day the rest of the people are asleep. Praise be to God that you are awakened! They are all uninformed, but praise be to God you are informed of the mysteries of God! Thank ye God that in this arena you have preceded others. I hope that each one of you may become a pillar of the palace of the oneness of the world of humanity. May each one of you become a luminous star of this heaven, thus lighting the path of those who are seeking the goal of human perfection.
Paris, France
March 10, 1913.

February 15. On this date in 1957, a letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to French Bahá'ís addressed the capitalization of pronouns referring to God, noting that "he would like in the European languages to have as much uniformity with the English translations as possible." Bahá'í works, such as the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, are translated into the world's languages from English versions, not the original Arabic or Persian.

February 15. On this date in 1957, a letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to French Bahá'ís addressed the capitalization of pronouns referring to God, noting that "he would like in the European languages to have as much uniformity with the English translations as possible." Bahá'í works, such as the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, are translated into the world's languages from English versions, not the original Arabic or Persian.

365. Capitalizing Pronouns in Other Languages
"He is interested in accomplishing two things--he would like in the European languages to have as much uniformity with the English translations as possible; he does not wish the Bahá'í translations to be in any way a flagrant violation of the rules of the language into which our literature is being translated.
"Your Committee must conscientiously study this question, and then do the best you can to have the Bahá'í literature in French meet the high standards of the French language and grammar.
"If the possessive and demonstrative adjectives and pronouns in French are never capitalized where they stand for 'God', then this should not be done in the Bahá'í literature. If there is a precedent for doing so in the French language, however, they should be. The same is true of the attributes of God."
(From a letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to the National Translation and Publication Committee of France, February 15, 1957)

To summarize rules of Bahá'í translations...

Arabic works cannot be translated into Persian.

Persian works cannot be translated into Arabic.

Persian and Arabic works can be translated "into Oriental languages such as Turkish and Urdu."

Persian and Arabic works can be translated into English.

Persian and Arabic works cannot be translated into European languages.

English works can be translated into European languages.

For further reading, please see "Persian, Arabic, and Provisional Translations", "Translation and provisional translations", "Unveiling the Hidden Words, by Diana Malouf: Commentary on "Translating the Hidden Words,' review by Franklin Lewis", a letter dated June 27, 1933 from Shoghi Effendi to Adelbert Mühlschlegel about Bahá'í orthography, a letter dated June 30, 1999 from the Universal House of Justice outlining its procedures for approving provisional as opposed to authorized translations, and a letter dated February 15, 1957 from Shoghi Effendi to French Bahá'ís.

February 14. On this date in 1910, Ola Pawlowska was born in Łąkta, Poland. Later named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for her pioneering work to St. Pierre and Miquelon, she died on April 2, 2004, in Newfoundland.

February 14. On this date in 1910, Ola Pawlowska was born in Łąkta, Poland. Later named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for her pioneering work to St. Pierre and Miquelon, she died on April 2, 2004, in Newfoundland.

February 14. On this date in 1910, Ola Pawlowska was born in Łąkta, Poland. She would later be named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for her pioneering work to the St. Pierre and Miquelon. "Knight of Bahá'u'lláh" was a title conferred to Bahá'ís who introduced the Bahá'í Faith to new territories during the Ten Year Crusade.

What has always struck me about the designation of Knights of Bahá'u'lláh is the arbitrariness with which the "virgin territories" were defined. For example, the Cook Islands and Tonga Island, both part of the Realm of New Zealand have distinct sets of Knights, while Niue and the Chatham Islands, also part of the Realm of New Zealand, are Knightless.
 
Several islands off the coast of Alaska have distinct Knights, like Baranof Island , Kodiak Island, and the Aleutian Islands. Yet other Alaskan islands, like the Pribilof Islands are Knightless.
The Brazilian state of Amapá has its own Knights (for Portuguese Guiana), while the other Brazilian states are Knightless.

Crete and Rhodes have Knights distinct from the Knights of mainland Greece, yet other Greek islands, like Santorini and Samos, are Knightless.

Key West has its own Knight, yet the other Florida Keys are Knightless.

Tiny islands, like Great Manan, have their own Knights. St. Thomas Island has its own Knight, yet the remaining Leeward Islands have one set of Knights, representing numerous politically and geographically independent islands. Similarly, the Windward Islands have one set of Knights, representing numerous politically and geographically independent islands.

February 13. On this date in 1913, 'Abdul Bahá addressed the Paris Theosophical Society, telling them that "The world of creation has had no beginning and will have no end."

 

February 13. On this date in 1913, 'Abdul Bahá addressed the Paris Theosophical Society, telling them that "The world of creation has had no beginning and will have no end."

CHAPTER VII
ADDRESS DELIVERED BY ABDUL BAHA
To the Paris Theosophical Society, at the Theosophical
Headquarters, 59 Avenue de la Bourdonnois,
February 13, 1913
ACCORDING to science, all forms of creation are endowed with life; this element of life and energy depending on environment and adaptations. Life as an attribute of growth is manifest to a minute degree in the mineral kingdom. It is more powerfully manifested in the vegetable kingdom and when we study the animal world we observe that the power of life is expressing itself through more capable mediums, showing manifold attributes. Ascending to the human kingdom we find that life, or what is figuratively called spirit, is declaring itself with knowledge in the utmost power and transcendency.
The more man strives along the degrees of attainment, the greater will be the unfoldment. The child born to the mother manifests this element of life in a more abundant degree than the child in the matrix. The display of the forces of life upon the arena of existence is incomparably greater than that of the dark and narrow world in which the babe lived for nine months. But when life attains to the summit of maturity, then its manifestations will be along many paths and cover many fields hitherto undreamed of.
Spirit in the human world is the discoverer of the realities of existence. All the inventions, all the sciences, all the hidden mysteries are brought to light through the activity of the spirit on the plane of life. While living in the Orient it organizes affairs in the Occident; while living on the earth it discovers the heavenly constellations. These examples ought to show you that the spirit of life is omnipotent, especially when it establishes a communication with God and becomes the recipient of the eternal light — then it transforms itself into a ray of the effulgence of the eternal sun.
This station is the greatest of all stations, for this connection of the spirit of man with God is like unto a mirror and the sun of reality is reflected in it. Thus it becomes the collective center of all the virtues; its emanation is the bestowal of the king of bestowers; its radiations are the manifold splendors of the infinite luminary; its sanctity is from the highest summit of divine essence. This station is the station of heavenly inspiration and is called the station of the divine grace. It signifies that the rays of the sun of reality are resplendent in the mirror and the attributes of the sun of reality are reflected therein. This is the ultimate degree of human perfection, for the attainment of which the thinkers and philosophers of all time have longed and poets have dreamed; it is the mystery of mysteries and the light of lights wherein the spirit becomes eternal, self-subsistent, age-abiding.
When we look upon the world of creation from another standpoint, the analytic, we observe that everything is the result of composition of many single atoms which through the law of affiliation have adhered and according to the shape, order and positions of these atoms, a given being steps forth into the court of objectivity. Every single atom of these aggregate atoms has its myriad transferences as has been proved by science.
Every single atom has its coursings throughout all the kingdoms of life. For instance, that which has gone into the composition of a human being was at one time in the mineral kingdom. Along the degrees of the mineral kingdom it journeyed, appearing in various forms and reflecting various images, manifesting a peculiar virtue in each. In the vegetable kingdom, it again partook of many experiences and through each experience became adorned with an added attribute. Having perfected its journeyings here, it entered the animal kingdom and was incarnated throughout multitudes of animal forms and finally, in the human kingdom it traversed endless forms of humanity, in each form of composition showing forth a particular aspect of the one power.
The forms of life are infinite, therefore the transferences of this primordial unit throughout the degrees of creation are infinite.
All phenomena are involved in all phenomena. Consider what a transcendent unity exists, that, from this standpoint, every monad is the expression of all life. This is the harmony which underlies all creation; this is the law and order in the world of existence. What wondrous symmetry! What stupendous organization! What divine completeness! What elysian co-ordination! What celestial union!
Every single manifestation of the myriad forms of creation is a reflection of the divine emanations, therefore the divine emanations are infinite, unlimited and illimitable. Gaze upward through immeasurable space to the majestic order of the colossal suns. These luminous bodies are numberless. Behind our solar system there are unfathomable stellar systems and above those stellar systems are the remote aggregations of the milky way. Extend your vision beyond the fixed stars and again you shall behold many spheres of light. In brief, the creation of the Almighty is beyond the grasp of the human intellect. When this objective creation is unlimited and not subject to suspension, is not the subjective creation of His Majesty the Almighty limitless? When the reflection or physical creation is infinite, how is it possible to circumscribe the reality which is the basis of divine creation? The spiritual world is so much greater than the physical that in comparison with it the physical world is non-existent.
Reflect that every human being is limited through his physical body, but his spirit is free. The body of man may travel for a few miles and become fatigued, but the spirit untrammeled may go throughout the immensity of space. While walking on earth man's thoughts may grasp the motions of the heavenly bodies and define their course. This demonstrates how man's spirit transcends his environment.
The divine grace, whether physical or spiritual, is unlimited, yet certain selfish souls desire to circumscribe to their own ideas the outpouring of this heavenly grace. Oh, the ignorant ones! They have declared that the age of this world, for example, is ten thousand years. By this is meant that the descent of the heavenly bestowals has extended only over that period, while in reality it is omnipresent. We cannot state reasonably that this world is ten thousand or one hundred thousand or one hundred million years old, for the divine rays have ever descended upon man.
The world of creation has had no beginning and will have no end, because it is the arena upon which the attributes and qualities of the spirit are being manifested. Can we limit God and his power? In the same manner we cannot limit his creations and attributes. Just as the reality of divinity is limitless, likewise his grace and bounties are limitless.
The supreme bestowal is the appearance of the heavenly messengers. How can we ever define or circumscribe this bestowal? If the scientists have proven that a molecule is an aggregate of myriads of atoms and the atom in turn is an aggregate of infinite electrons, how can the sun be comprehended? If the drop is infinite in its particles, how much more the sea? If the material world is infinite with regard to its manifestations of life, can the spiritual world be finite? The prophets of God have ever appeared in the ages of the past and will continue to appear throughout the ages of the future. Where was Adam when God was exercising his divinity? Where was this petty infinitesimal world of ours when God was bestowing his bounties upon this infinite universe? If we limit the number of his appearances through his prophets, it is equal to limiting God himself.
Man has ever longed for a direct means of communication with his Lord and has ever been in a state of anticipation for the unique advent on this earth of a divine being. The followers of all religions have been expecting the coming of a promised one and have longingly prayed for the dawn of the sun of truth. Alas! A thousand times alas! that when he appeared they remained of the heedless, nor turned their faces toward him. Pitiful indeed is their condition! In lamentation, during the darkness of night they prayed for the light of a new day; but when it dawned from the eastern horizon they cried clamorously: "Where is the sun? We do not see it!" They are of those who are bereft of sight.
Two thousand years ago the Israelites expected the Messiah. Day and night they were praying in the temple, supplicating in the holy of holies, crying, "O God, send to us the true one, our deliverer and redeemer" — thus they lamented and bemoaned his delay. But when His Holiness the Christ appeared they jeeringly turned away; when the orb of reality dawned they could not see it, for their eyes were covered with the veils of traditions and names. These anxious waiting ones did not become the recipients of that bestowal; nor harken to the call of God; nor quaff from the chalice of love; nor behold the rays of the sun of reality. It is now nearly two thousand years since their Messiah appeared and still they await him!
May our eyes be ever awake; may the windows of our minds be flung awide, so that when the messenger appeareth, we may not be deprived of his glory through the veils of preconceived ideas; so that when the heavenly herald shouts the word of God, we may not be deaf; so that when the holy fragrance of the paradise of the Almighty be diffused, our nostrils may not be afflicted with cold. May we be enabled to inhale the perfume, behold the splendor, hearken to the voice and be regenerated with the spirit of the new day.
Then our life will be revivified, we shall enjoy eternal existence, be refreshed with the breath of the Holy Spirit and become informed of the mysteries of creation. Then we shall be inspired to upraise the standard of the oneness of humanity; we shall take a portion of the divine grace and become resplendent with the rays of the heavenly luminary; then the human race will mirror forth the attributes of the eternal kingdom and will move like a peaceful sea and each individual will appear as a wave. As we look upon the sea, we will comprehend it as the sea of God; as we look upon the waves, we will realize that they are the souls of humanity. The sun is one; all light is one; the rays are one; it shines on all.
This century is the century of the oneness of the world of humanity, the century of justice; this century is the century of universal peace, the century of the dawn of the sun of reality; this century is the century of the establishment of the kingdom of God upon this earth; therefore let us grasp every means to promote the federation of the world, that we may become the recipients of the divine outpourings.
Today we observe that various means of unity are being brought forward and this in itself is an evidence that the divine confirmations surround us.
One sign of unity is the construction of an international auxiliary language, Esperanto.
Let us strive untiringly to spread this language.
I am most pleased with you and am very grateful to find myself in such a revered gathering.
I shall remember your spiritual susceptibilities and pray that they may be directed toward the highest, that your love for your Lord and your attraction toward him may increase day unto day. I hope that this revered society may become conducive to the illumination of the city of Paris, in order that the blind may receive sight; the deaf hearing; the dumb the power of speech; and that into these dead bodies the spirit of life may be infused. Then this Paris will become another Paris and this world another world.
After Abdul Bahá had taken his seat, at the request of the friends he again mounted the rostrum and offered the following
SUPPLICATION
O GOD, O MY LORD, I SUPPLICATE TO THEE AND IMPLORE IN THY PRESENCE AND INVOKE THEE WITH THE TONGUE OF MY CONSCIENCE, MY SOUL, MY SPIRIT, MY MIND, TO SHOWER DOWN THY MERCIFUL BESTOWALS UPON THESE HOLY SOULS WHO HAVE GATHERED IN THIS GREAT ASSEMBLY. I BEG OF THEE, O MY LORD, TO FAVOR THEM WITH THE GLANCES OF THY POWER. I ENTREAT THEE, O MY BELOVED, TO POUR UPON THEM THE RAIN OF THY FAVOR FROM THE CLOUDS OF THY MERCY. VERILY THESE ARE THY SERVANTS AND THY MAIDSERVANTS. DEPRIVE THEM NOT OF THE SUNBEAMS OF REALITY; MAKE THEM LIKE WAVES OF THY OCEAN AND LEAVE THEM NOT TO THE DARKNESS OF THEMSELVES. O LORD, ENLIGHTEN THEIR HEARTS WITH THE LIGHT OF UNITY; CHEER THEIR SPIRITS WITH THE MYSTIC TRACES OF THY KNOWLEDGE; ILLUMINE THEIR EYES WITH BEHOLDING THY SIGNS; PURIFY THEIR SOULS WITH THE WONDERS OF THY MAJESTY; INSPIRE THEIR CONSCIENCES WITH THE WORD OF THY SINGLENESS; ENCIRCLE THEM WITH THY HEAVENLY GRACES. VERILY THOU ART THE OMNIPOTENT, THE MIGHTY. O LORD! THOU SEEST THE HEARTS OF HUMBLENESS BEFORE THY DOMINION, THE SOULS REJOICED WITH THY PROCLAMATIONS, THE SPIRITS ATTRACTED BY THY HOLY FRAGRANCES. O LORD, CONFIRM US IN THY GOOD PLEASURE, ASSIST US IN THY ADORATION AND CAUSE US TO BECOME WORTHY SERVANTS TURNING OUR FACES TOWARD THE HORIZON OF THY SINGLENESS ILLUMINED WITH THE RAYS OF THE SUN OF THY REALITY.
VERILY THOU ART THE CLEMENT, THE BOUNTEOUS AND VERILY THOU ART THE MOST MERCIFUL OF THE MERCIFUL!

February 13. On this date in 1913, 'Abdul Bahá addressed the Paris Theosophical Society, telling them that "One sign of unity is the construction of an international auxiliary language, Esperanto. Let us strive untiringly to spread this language."

February 13. On this date in 1913, 'Abdul Bahá addressed the Paris Theosophical Society, telling them that "One sign of unity is the construction of an international auxiliary language, Esperanto. Let us strive untiringly to spread this language."

CHAPTER VII
ADDRESS DELIVERED BY ABDUL BAHA
To the Paris Theosophical Society, at the Theosophical
Headquarters, 59 Avenue de la Bourdonnois,
February 13, 1913
ACCORDING to science, all forms of creation are endowed with life; this element of life and energy depending on environment and adaptations. Life as an attribute of growth is manifest to a minute degree in the mineral kingdom. It is more powerfully manifested in the vegetable kingdom and when we study the animal world we observe that the power of life is expressing itself through more capable mediums, showing manifold attributes. Ascending to the human kingdom we find that life, or what is figuratively called spirit, is declaring itself with knowledge in the utmost power and transcendency.
The more man strives along the degrees of attainment, the greater will be the unfoldment. The child born to the mother manifests this element of life in a more abundant degree than the child in the matrix. The display of the forces of life upon the arena of existence is incomparably greater than that of the dark and narrow world in which the babe lived for nine months. But when life attains to the summit of maturity, then its manifestations will be along many paths and cover many fields hitherto undreamed of.
Spirit in the human world is the discoverer of the realities of existence. All the inventions, all the sciences, all the hidden mysteries are brought to light through the activity of the spirit on the plane of life. While living in the Orient it organizes affairs in the Occident; while living on the earth it discovers the heavenly constellations. These examples ought to show you that the spirit of life is omnipotent, especially when it establishes a communication with God and becomes the recipient of the eternal light — then it transforms itself into a ray of the effulgence of the eternal sun.
This station is the greatest of all stations, for this connection of the spirit of man with God is like unto a mirror and the sun of reality is reflected in it. Thus it becomes the collective center of all the virtues; its emanation is the bestowal of the king of bestowers; its radiations are the manifold splendors of the infinite luminary; its sanctity is from the highest summit of divine essence. This station is the station of heavenly inspiration and is called the station of the divine grace. It signifies that the rays of the sun of reality are resplendent in the mirror and the attributes of the sun of reality are reflected therein. This is the ultimate degree of human perfection, for the attainment of which the thinkers and philosophers of all time have longed and poets have dreamed; it is the mystery of mysteries and the light of lights wherein the spirit becomes eternal, self-subsistent, age-abiding.
When we look upon the world of creation from another standpoint, the analytic, we observe that everything is the result of composition of many single atoms which through the law of affiliation have adhered and according to the shape, order and positions of these atoms, a given being steps forth into the court of objectivity. Every single atom of these aggregate atoms has its myriad transferences as has been proved by science.
Every single atom has its coursings throughout all the kingdoms of life. For instance, that which has gone into the composition of a human being was at one time in the mineral kingdom. Along the degrees of the mineral kingdom it journeyed, appearing in various forms and reflecting various images, manifesting a peculiar virtue in each. In the vegetable kingdom, it again partook of many experiences and through each experience became adorned with an added attribute. Having perfected its journeyings here, it entered the animal kingdom and was incarnated throughout multitudes of animal forms and finally, in the human kingdom it traversed endless forms of humanity, in each form of composition showing forth a particular aspect of the one power.
The forms of life are infinite, therefore the transferences of this primordial unit throughout the degrees of creation are infinite.
All phenomena are involved in all phenomena. Consider what a transcendent unity exists, that, from this standpoint, every monad is the expression of all life. This is the harmony which underlies all creation; this is the law and order in the world of existence. What wondrous symmetry! What stupendous organization! What divine completeness! What elysian co-ordination! What celestial union!
Every single manifestation of the myriad forms of creation is a reflection of the divine emanations, therefore the divine emanations are infinite, unlimited and illimitable. Gaze upward through immeasurable space to the majestic order of the colossal suns. These luminous bodies are numberless. Behind our solar system there are unfathomable stellar systems and above those stellar systems are the remote aggregations of the milky way. Extend your vision beyond the fixed stars and again you shall behold many spheres of light. In brief, the creation of the Almighty is beyond the grasp of the human intellect. When this objective creation is unlimited and not subject to suspension, is not the subjective creation of His Majesty the Almighty limitless? When the reflection or physical creation is infinite, how is it possible to circumscribe the reality which is the basis of divine creation? The spiritual world is so much greater than the physical that in comparison with it the physical world is non-existent.
Reflect that every human being is limited through his physical body, but his spirit is free. The body of man may travel for a few miles and become fatigued, but the spirit untrammeled may go throughout the immensity of space. While walking on earth man's thoughts may grasp the motions of the heavenly bodies and define their course. This demonstrates how man's spirit transcends his environment.
The divine grace, whether physical or spiritual, is unlimited, yet certain selfish souls desire to circumscribe to their own ideas the outpouring of this heavenly grace. Oh, the ignorant ones! They have declared that the age of this world, for example, is ten thousand years. By this is meant that the descent of the heavenly bestowals has extended only over that period, while in reality it is omnipresent. We cannot state reasonably that this world is ten thousand or one hundred thousand or one hundred million years old, for the divine rays have ever descended upon man.
The world of creation has had no beginning and will have no end, because it is the arena upon which the attributes and qualities of the spirit are being manifested. Can we limit God and his power? In the same manner we cannot limit his creations and attributes. Just as the reality of divinity is limitless, likewise his grace and bounties are limitless.
The supreme bestowal is the appearance of the heavenly messengers. How can we ever define or circumscribe this bestowal? If the scientists have proven that a molecule is an aggregate of myriads of atoms and the atom in turn is an aggregate of infinite electrons, how can the sun be comprehended? If the drop is infinite in its particles, how much more the sea? If the material world is infinite with regard to its manifestations of life, can the spiritual world be finite? The prophets of God have ever appeared in the ages of the past and will continue to appear throughout the ages of the future. Where was Adam when God was exercising his divinity? Where was this petty infinitesimal world of ours when God was bestowing his bounties upon this infinite universe? If we limit the number of his appearances through his prophets, it is equal to limiting God himself.
Man has ever longed for a direct means of communication with his Lord and has ever been in a state of anticipation for the unique advent on this earth of a divine being. The followers of all religions have been expecting the coming of a promised one and have longingly prayed for the dawn of the sun of truth. Alas! A thousand times alas! that when he appeared they remained of the heedless, nor turned their faces toward him. Pitiful indeed is their condition! In lamentation, during the darkness of night they prayed for the light of a new day; but when it dawned from the eastern horizon they cried clamorously: "Where is the sun? We do not see it!" They are of those who are bereft of sight.
Two thousand years ago the Israelites expected the Messiah. Day and night they were praying in the temple, supplicating in the holy of holies, crying, "O God, send to us the true one, our deliverer and redeemer" — thus they lamented and bemoaned his delay. But when His Holiness the Christ appeared they jeeringly turned away; when the orb of reality dawned they could not see it, for their eyes were covered with the veils of traditions and names. These anxious waiting ones did not become the recipients of that bestowal; nor harken to the call of God; nor quaff from the chalice of love; nor behold the rays of the sun of reality. It is now nearly two thousand years since their Messiah appeared and still they await him!
May our eyes be ever awake; may the windows of our minds be flung awide, so that when the messenger appeareth, we may not be deprived of his glory through the veils of preconceived ideas; so that when the heavenly herald shouts the word of God, we may not be deaf; so that when the holy fragrance of the paradise of the Almighty be diffused, our nostrils may not be afflicted with cold. May we be enabled to inhale the perfume, behold the splendor, hearken to the voice and be regenerated with the spirit of the new day.
Then our life will be revivified, we shall enjoy eternal existence, be refreshed with the breath of the Holy Spirit and become informed of the mysteries of creation. Then we shall be inspired to upraise the standard of the oneness of humanity; we shall take a portion of the divine grace and become resplendent with the rays of the heavenly luminary; then the human race will mirror forth the attributes of the eternal kingdom and will move like a peaceful sea and each individual will appear as a wave. As we look upon the sea, we will comprehend it as the sea of God; as we look upon the waves, we will realize that they are the souls of humanity. The sun is one; all light is one; the rays are one; it shines on all.
This century is the century of the oneness of the world of humanity, the century of justice; this century is the century of universal peace, the century of the dawn of the sun of reality; this century is the century of the establishment of the kingdom of God upon this earth; therefore let us grasp every means to promote the federation of the world, that we may become the recipients of the divine outpourings.
Today we observe that various means of unity are being brought forward and this in itself is an evidence that the divine confirmations surround us.
One sign of unity is the construction of an international auxiliary language, Esperanto.
Let us strive untiringly to spread this language.
I am most pleased with you and am very grateful to find myself in such a revered gathering.
I shall remember your spiritual susceptibilities and pray that they may be directed toward the highest, that your love for your Lord and your attraction toward him may increase day unto day. I hope that this revered society may become conducive to the illumination of the city of Paris, in order that the blind may receive sight; the deaf hearing; the dumb the power of speech; and that into these dead bodies the spirit of life may be infused. Then this Paris will become another Paris and this world another world.
After Abdul Bahá had taken his seat, at the request of the friends he again mounted the rostrum and offered the following
SUPPLICATION
O GOD, O MY LORD, I SUPPLICATE TO THEE AND IMPLORE IN THY PRESENCE AND INVOKE THEE WITH THE TONGUE OF MY CONSCIENCE, MY SOUL, MY SPIRIT, MY MIND, TO SHOWER DOWN THY MERCIFUL BESTOWALS UPON THESE HOLY SOULS WHO HAVE GATHERED IN THIS GREAT ASSEMBLY. I BEG OF THEE, O MY LORD, TO FAVOR THEM WITH THE GLANCES OF THY POWER. I ENTREAT THEE, O MY BELOVED, TO POUR UPON THEM THE RAIN OF THY FAVOR FROM THE CLOUDS OF THY MERCY. VERILY THESE ARE THY SERVANTS AND THY MAIDSERVANTS. DEPRIVE THEM NOT OF THE SUNBEAMS OF REALITY; MAKE THEM LIKE WAVES OF THY OCEAN AND LEAVE THEM NOT TO THE DARKNESS OF THEMSELVES. O LORD, ENLIGHTEN THEIR HEARTS WITH THE LIGHT OF UNITY; CHEER THEIR SPIRITS WITH THE MYSTIC TRACES OF THY KNOWLEDGE; ILLUMINE THEIR EYES WITH BEHOLDING THY SIGNS; PURIFY THEIR SOULS WITH THE WONDERS OF THY MAJESTY; INSPIRE THEIR CONSCIENCES WITH THE WORD OF THY SINGLENESS; ENCIRCLE THEM WITH THY HEAVENLY GRACES. VERILY THOU ART THE OMNIPOTENT, THE MIGHTY. O LORD! THOU SEEST THE HEARTS OF HUMBLENESS BEFORE THY DOMINION, THE SOULS REJOICED WITH THY PROCLAMATIONS, THE SPIRITS ATTRACTED BY THY HOLY FRAGRANCES. O LORD, CONFIRM US IN THY GOOD PLEASURE, ASSIST US IN THY ADORATION AND CAUSE US TO BECOME WORTHY SERVANTS TURNING OUR FACES TOWARD THE HORIZON OF THY SINGLENESS ILLUMINED WITH THE RAYS OF THE SUN OF THY REALITY.
VERILY THOU ART THE CLEMENT, THE BOUNTEOUS AND VERILY THOU ART THE MOST MERCIFUL OF THE MERCIFUL!